NEW YORK—Chris Kreider, a little more than a month after his last college class, has five playoff goals.

To give that some historical perspective, no player in NHL history has scored that many before getting his first in the regular season. To give it some more immediate context, the 20-year-old former Boston College standout has more goals to his name than conversations with his coach.

"I don't know the kid at all. I've probably spoken to him probably three or four times since he's been here," Rangers coach John Tortorella said after Kreider found the net in his third straight game, a 3-0 win over the New Jersey Devils in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals.

"But he has a knack. The puck follows him around. And he has a ways to go away from the puck, but he has a knack with that puck."

That was on display on Saturday afternoon, when he scored on what defenseman Dan Girardi called a "drive-by tip" of Ryan McDonagh's third-period shot, putting the Rangers up 2-0 and firmly in control of a game that, for them, looked to be on the verge of spinning out of control; the Devils had put 26 shots on net through two periods.

"It's a big stage to come into the league," McDonagh, just 22 himself, said afterward. "Not a lot of guys can do that—come into the playoffs and be effective as he has. And he just goes about his business and is trying to learn. Guys are telling him this and that, and some guys can shy away from it or not think that much about it, but he's all ears."

All ears, and not much mouth; Kreider, regularly swarmed by reporters during this run, speaks quietly enough to make transcribing his words difficult. That's in character for a player that the Rangers, to a man, praise for attention to detail, a desire to learn as much as possible and the requisite focus on winning games, not scoring goals.

Asked on Saturday about his streak, Kreider said he was more focused on the fact that the Rangers had dropped one of the games.

“I’d trade that for three wins, though,” Kreider said. “I’m just worried about the next one.”

Don't mistake that soft-spokenness for timidness, though; Kreider regularly talks at length and gives thoughtful, composed answers. That quality comes out in his game, as well.

"He's got a lot of confidence, and we just need him to keep it going," Girardi said.

That confidence, in part, stems from a skill Kreider possesses that belies his 6-3, 220-pound frame: Arresting, all-world skating ability. In person, it's difficult not to notice—circling the ice, even without the puck, he just looks different. Take it from Brad Richards, who called Kreider's speed "something to behold" after Game 3.

"That's how he creates. He creates everything with that. That's his asset. And it worked out again (in Game 3) for us," said Richards, who, along with Marian Gaborik, spent time with Kreider flanking them on New York's top line.

Tortorella said that ability, in turn, has helped cover some mistakes and bought him time to pick up New York's system without much direction. He also has brought energy to a power play that Tortorella earlier this week said had been "pretty crappy at times"; he has a pair of power-play goals in the series.

"I think his legs get him where he wants to be as far as getting to pucks," Tortorella said Sunday. "And we're not doing a lot of teaching and a lot of structure with him. It's just the wrong time. There's enough things going through his head where we just want him to play."

Monday night, Kreider gets his chance at that third win and a chance to head back to Madison Square Garden with a 2-1 series lead.

Henrik Lundqvist summed up Kreider on Saturday; he's not quite similar to a guy like Richards, who plays with the precision you'd expect from a 32-year-old former Conn Smythe winner with 934 games to his name. Kreider's at 15.

"I don't know about veteran, but everybody's here for a reason," Lundqvist said. "They're not here because we think a guy's going to be good next year or two years. He's here and playing because he's good right now."